2008 = 1 New Car Launch Every 6 Days!!!

The Economic Times says 60 new car launches in 366 days. Wow!!! Am keenly looking out for the Hyundai Santa Fe and the GM Captiva. Their feature set and price point should be of interest to many a SUV enthusiast in India.

Car Fun - What?

Sorry been away from blogland for a few weeks. Just as I was getting ready to storm into the dealers one day to let them know what I thought of the squeaks that were driving me mad I got an invitation to visit a customer forum - Carfun organized by them on the 22nd.

In the meantime I have confirmed that the rear squeaks are only tailgate related. So now it should be easier to fix. So off I went to Carfun. The start was 45 mins late due to technical faults with laptop and projector. Not good.

Anyways we got going and the Indica owners started things off. Finally after a few minutes got my turn with the mic and I brought to their notice 3 points.

1. Why did the truck need 2 liters of engine oil in its first service and why did I pay for it? Also, why did I get a recite that mentioned "Petrol Engine Oil"?

2. The squeaks were never really fixed in that service despite the 48 hour service period. What did they plan to do about this?

3. The Protective Engine Coating that I paid Rs.900/- for was botched. The hood was shut before the coating could dry and some of the insulation wool from under the hood is now stuck to the black plastic engine cover. (The Beast is now Hairy!!!) What action would be taken for such shoddy work?

On point No.1 they did the usual merry go round and word juggling. On realizing that they were not really taking any meaningful measures to calm me down the dealer as well as the TML guys agreed that I should not have paid for the 2 liters.

Point 2 & 3 was accepted straight away by the dealer who has assured me that the squeaks will be dealt with in a day. The "Hair" in the engine bay will also be seen to and I await a call from Pandit Auto soon to get this mess sorted.

All in all I did find the forum very useful in getting the customers grievances across. Finally TML has realized the importance of this. No longer are they burying their heads in the sand and pretending to be the best car makers of the land.

Carfun is a monthly affair and any Tata Car customer can attend. This is a good start!

Report @ 2000kms!

Just finished the second thousand kilometers and just wanted to share the status of the Beast.

1. Engine is settling down well.
2. Gear shift is crisper and slots in well.
3. The Ride is less bouncy and seems to absorb bad roads better.
4. The rear is squeaking away. Could be tail gate or the boot floor/side panels. Not any of the seats though.
   
5. Have got used to the dimensions of the battleship and is a doddle to drive in city traffic now.
6. Pick up is much better now. The "Lunge" is more noticeable now than before especially in the third gear when I suddenly need to overtake.
7. Easier to park in most places now as I use the camera to better results now.
8. Planning a trip to Goa once the squeaks are arrested. :-)
   

Squeak Monsters - The Battle!

Have not had the time to take the beast in at the dealers to get de-squeaked yet. So have been keeping a keen eye/ear out for the squeaks. Well, to put it simply here is the story so far:

1. The noise only begins about 10mins into a drive, not at the start.
2. Occurs only on bad and uneven roads. (In Pune that being almost everywhere!
3. The other day had a few bags of shopping at the back and the squeaks never reared their ugly head. So again could be the boot space/floor rather than the door.
4. Everything seems in its place. All the panel screws seem tight. There is no vertical play in the tail gate. It all seems to be noise free when one shakes things around manually.
5. The intensity of the noise is not consistent. Some times it is more than others.
6. All the plastic sticker sheets that covered the carpets have now been removed completely.
7. The spare wheel yet to be checked for loose bolts.

So, all in all the squeaks remain but have reduced in intensity a bit. Will give it another week before taking it to the doctors, unless of course the wild band comes back and then it will have to be taken in ASAP.

Squeak Monsters - The Return!

About 70 kms after the first servicing the squeaks are back. Today while on a drive they got really loud and very irritating. So much so that my wife decided to help me investigate the source. She got into the back and on to the jump seats.

All this time I have been thinking that it is the middle seat causing the ruckus with the clicks and squeaks. Well today we found out that I was wrong all along. It is not the seats but the tail gate and/or the area around it that squeaks and clicks. Once my wife sat on the left hand side jump seat all these excruciating sounds disappeared. Even the jump seats are totally silent over bumps whether open or folded. The rear door on the other hand is emitting gut wrenching squeaks that make Guantanamo Bay a better place to be in.

I will probably have to send the truck back to the dealers to have it sorted. Since the sounds seem to be plastic panel related not much I can do to help the situation.

It is sad that TML has put a beautiful diesel engine that purrs into a beast that still rattles. Do any of your Safari's have a squeaking tail gate? Is this a design issue that will never go away or is this fixable? Are there any home remedies to fix this?

Do drop in a line if you can share your experiences with the squeaks and clicks of your own beast!

List of Known Issues! Updated 26/11/07

So the list is now created for all future owners to look out for these specific problems regarding the 2.2.! Please look for these problems before you take custody of your Beast!

1. Loose battery cables.
2. Pieces of Cardboard in the engine bay.
3. Loose wheel nuts.
4. Some vehicles have left the factory with low engine oil levels.
   

First Service - The Cost!

The first service cost me 1220/-. The engine coating was 900/- and they added 2 liters of engine oil for 320/- . I hope to add a photo of the "Coated Engine" soon.

I asked why the oil was added and didn't really get any thing meaningful out from the guy at the workshop other than that I must check engine oil levels once a week. Anyways as I said all seems well for now. Also the clicking completely stops if the seat behind the driver is occupied so am hoping to find the source and kill it once and for all.

If any of you are familiar with the Safari's middle row seats and could help me start somewhere particular please do let me know.;-)